Louver



Feb. 26, 1952 R. c. MOYER ETAL LOUVER 2 SHEETS-SHEET 1 Filed July 2,1949 Inventors Richard Cmrg r' Norman J.O iver max L fiysdan. q M9 QZM4M g m R. C. MOYER ETAL Feb. 26, 1952 LOUVER 2 SHEETS-SHEET 2 Filed July2, 1949 l 7' 72 ,2 66 Inventors Richard C- h1 9 yer Norman J. Oliver maxL. Rysdo Patented Feb. 26, 1952 LOUVER Richard C. Moyer, Norman J.Oliver, and Max L. Rysdon, Sioux Falls, S. Dak., assignors to SiouxSteel Company, Sioux Falls, S. Dak., a corporation of DelawareApplication July 2, 1949, Serial No. 102,748

9 Claims.

This invention relates to a ventilator, and particularly a louverventilator for use in an attic.

As is well known, roofs of houses vary in pitch, forming gables ofvarying angles; however'the great majority of roofs are within a limitedrange of pitches. The ventilator of the present in vention is intendedto be positioned at the apex of the gable.

An object of the present invention is the provision of a ventilatoradapted for positioning in a wall at the apex of a gable, and which isadapted to be fitted to gables of various pitches.

Another object is the provision of a ventilator adapted to be fitted toa gable of any of various pitches, which includes a rigid ventilatorelement and adjustable molding elements for adapting the ventilatorelement to the gable.

Another object is the provision of a ventilator adaptable to a gable ofany of various pitches,

which by reason of its novel construction re- 4 quires less materialthan ventilators heretofore known.

Still another object of the invention is the provision of a louverventilator in which snow and rain are effectively prevented from,working past the ends of the louver blades.

A further object is the provision of a ventilator which is in effectadjustable so as to be fitted to a roof gable of any of various pitches,and which presents a uniform appearance with relation to the rake boardsof the roof.

A still further object of the invention is the provision of a louverventilator adapted to be fitted to a roof gable of any of variouspitches which, by reason of novel construction, although being in effectadjustable, possesses the following advantageous features: there are noloose parts to rattle after installation; one-piece louver blades areprovided resulting in better appearance; the louver blades, when made ofmetal, can be given the appearance of wood blades; the louver blades areof fixed spacing; the ventilator can be installed in a building in aminimum of time; and the ventilator entails a minimum of fabricatingcosts.

With these and other objects in View, this invention consists in theconstruction, arrangement and combination of the various parts of thedevice whereby the objects contemplated are attained, as hereinaftermore fully set forth, pointed out in our claims, and illustrated in theaccompanying drawings, wherein:

Figure 1 is a view of the ventilator of the present invention installedin a building adjacent the roof gable as viewed from the outside of thebuilding;

Figure 2 is a view of the ventilator from the inside of the building;

Figure 3 is a reduced scale view of the outer side of the ventilatorwith the molding strips removed;

Figure 4 is a view similar to Figure 3 but from the opposite sidethereof;

Figure 5 is an enlarged sectional view taken on line 5-5 of Figure 1;

Figure 6 is an enlarged sectional view taken on line 66 of Figure 1;

Figure 7 is a sectional view taken on line 1-1 of Figure 5; and

Figure 8 is a semi-diagrammatic view similar to Figure 1 illustratingthe ventilator installed in a roof gable of a different pitch.

Referring now in detail to the drawings, the ventilator comprises arigid unit, or ventilator proper, which is shown as a whole in Figures 3and 4, and molding strips applied thereto, the molding strips beingshown in Figures 1 and 2. The molding strips are omitted from Figures 3and 4 for purposes of clarity. The ventilator unit itself is indicatedat l2 and the molding strips are referred to at M. The unit l2 comprisesa pair of frame members [6 disposed at an angle to each other, in theform of an inverted V, and

rigidly joined together at the apex of the angle as indicated at I8.

The whole ventilator is preferably fabricated from sheet metal, being,in the present instance. aluminum but it may of course be fabricatedfrom other metal which is resistant to erosion from the elements.

Each frame member It includes a web portion 20 having a fiange 22extending substantially perpendicularly therefrom on one side, and aflange 24 extending substantially perpendicularly therefrom from theopposite edge and in the direction opposite the flange 22. The flange 24has a doubled back portion 26, Figure 6, which includes a terminalflange 28 adapted to be crimped for securing a screen 30 which will bereferred to later.

At the apex N of the anglethe two frame members l6 are secured togetherrigidly by means of a joint illustrated in Figure 7. Each of the Webportions 20 is provided with an extension 32, the extensions beingoverlapped on the opposite frame member, one being disposed on theoutside and the other on the inside. The extensions 32 are thenspot-Welded as indicated at 34 to the web portion 20 of the oppositeframe member. The flanges 22 on the frame members iii are extended atthe apex of the angle in overlapping relation to each other and rigidlysecured together as by spot-welding. At the junction point between theflanges 22 is a slot 35 disposed vertically and therefore extending on aline which substantially bisects the angle formed by the frame members.The flanges 22 are also provided with a plurality of nail holes 38 forsecuring the device to the members of the build- Secured to and betweenthe frame members It are a plurality of louver blades ii The ends ofeach louver blade are upturned as at 42, Figures 3 and 5. The ends 22are disposed at such an angle as to lie substantially flat against theweb portions 26 of the frame elements It as indicated particularl inFigure 5; the upturned ends 42 are then spotwelded as indicated at Mi tothe frame members, and the louver blades are therefore rigidly securedto the frame members. All .of the louver blades 46 are substantiallyalike except the lowermost which will be referred to later. Each of theupper louver blades is disposed to slope downwardly in a directionoutwardly from the building and at its inner upper edge is provided withan upturned flange or rib 46 which engages the flanges 24 on the innerside of the latter, and at its lower and outer edge with a downturnedflange or rib 48. The flanges lie in a plane adjacent the inner surfaceof the ventilator unit l2, and the flanges 48 lie in a plane adjacentthe outer surface of the unit.

The lowermost louver t!) at its inner upper edge is provided with adownturned flange 59 which is of greater vertical extent than theflanges or ribs 36 and the lower end of the flange 50 terminates in anupturned portion 52. flange 5B and its upturned portion 52 lie insubstantially the same plane as the doubled back portions 26 of theflanges 2d. The other lower edge of the lower louver blade 59 isprovided with a downwardly extending flange 54 which is of greater depthor vertical extent than the flanges or ribs 18 on the other louverblades. The flange 54 is provided with a plurality of nail holes 56.

The screen 38 is of triangular shape of such a size to cover the spacedefined by the frame members I6 and the lowermost louver t6; the taperedmarginal edges of the screen are inserted between the flanges 28 and theflanges 25, and the bottom edge of the screen is inserted between theflanges 52 and 5B, and the flanges 28 and 52 are crimped for securingthe screen rigidly in place.

The ventilator unit shown as a whole in'Figures 3 and 4 is thus a rigidunit and'speciala'ttention is directed to this fact together withthe'expla'nation hereafter with reference to its applicability to roofgables of different pitches.

The molding strips 5 are relatively long sheet metal strips which areprovided with reversely bent longitudinal edges 53 for purposes ofeliminating rough edges and for reinforcement, and said strips beingprovided with spaced apart nail holes 59. The molding strips it overlapat the apex of the angle of the ventilator unit-and together areprovided with a rivet or pin 60 which is inserted through registeringholes in the molding strips and through the slot 36 in the flanges 22.The rivet 69 is so arranged as to be slidable vertically in the slot 38and also so that the-molding strips Us are free to swing about therivet, so that the swinging ends may be positioned in such a manner thatthe molding strips overlie the frame members it. It will be noted thatthe molding strips I i are at least as long as the frame members I6 andactually extend slightly downwardly The a 4 therebeyond for purposes ofbetter appearance. It should also be noted that the molding strips M areof considerably greater width than the width of the flanges 22 on theframe members.

The ventilator, as explained above, is adapted to be applied to roofs ofvarious pitches. Roofs on houses or at least by far the great majorityof them are within a range of pitches known as 8 pitch and 10" pitch.These designations re- 3 fer to the rise with respect to the horizontaldimension, i. e., the 8 pitch root rises eight inches per foothorizontal measure, and the 10" pitch roof rises ten inches per foothorizontal measure. In order that the ventilator be adaptable to thegreatest range of pitches it is of an angle representing a pitch of roofintermediate the 8 and 10" pitches referred to, or in other words, theparticular illustration is of a ventilator comparable to a 9 pitch roof.

Figure 1 illustrates a 10" pitch roof which is indicated by thereference numeral 62. The construction of the roof is of courseconventional and employs the usual rake boards 54. The numeral 66represents the wall of the building'which extends up to the gable of theroof and is provided with an opening 68 for the insertion of theventilator. The opening is defined by the rake boards at the top, andits lower edge is at an appropriate level for accommodatingthe'ventilator. The ventilator may be installed in the originalconstruction of the building, or it may be installed later after thebuilding is otherwise completed. In the illustration in Figures 1 and 2the rake boards 64 form an angle which is more acute than the angle ofthe ventilator and as a consequence the lower ends of the'fram'e membersi6 engage the rake boards and the apex of the angle of the'ventilater isspaced downwardly from the apex of the roof gable, leaving a spaceindicated at 19. The space 10 of course converges downwardly and whenthe ventilator is put in place, the frame members 16 and therefore theflanges 22 are disposed out of parallelism with the rake boards. Theventilator is put in position in such a manner that the flanges 22 onthe frame members engage and lie flat against the rake boards 54. Sincethe flanges 22 are not parallel with the rake boards only the lower nailholes 38 in said flange will 'overlie the rake boards and in theseparticular holes nails are driven for securing the ventilatorinposition. The flange 54 on the lowermost louver blade 40 also engagesand lies flat on the wall 66 and nails are likewise driven through thenail holes 56. The molding strips I 3 are then adjusted so as to overliethe frame members [6 whichis accomplished by adjusting the upper ends ofthe molding strips vertically within the limits of the slot 36 andswinging the lower ends to the proper position. When disposed in thedesired position the molding strips 54 are parallel with the rake boards64 and the molding strips are wide enough so that the flanges 22 on theframe members are entirely covered from top to bottom. Toward the top ofthe ventilator where the flanges 22 do not overlie the rake boards, themolding strips it do overlie the rake boards,and nails may be driven inthe nail holes 59 in the molding strips for securing them to the-rakeboards. Thus, the upper end of the ventilator is rigidly secured to thebuilding.

It will be noted that the molding strips overlie not only the flanges 22but a portion of the rake boards and a portion of the ends of the louverblades.

In the case of an 8" pitch roof the spaces be tweenthe various elementsof the ventilator and the elements of the building are reversed.-Attention is directed to Figure 8 illustrating the same ventilatorapplied to an 8" pitch roof gable. In this case the apex of theventilator engages the apex of .the gable, and there are spaces I2 be-'tweenthe web members .20 and the rake boards. These spaces divergedownwardly having their greatest dimension at the lower ends of theframe members. In the. latter case. the molding strips 14 are againarranged parallel with the rake boards 64 but their relation withrespect to the frame members [6 is reversed. In the present case theflanges '22 at their upper ends overlie the rake boards .and at thesepoints nails. are driven through the nail holes 38 and since the lowerends of the flanges 22 do not overlie the rake boards nails are driventhrough the mold-, ing strips [4 at their lower ends for securing themolding strips and the lower end of the ventilator securely in place. Inthe case of the installation of Figure 8 nails are also driven throughthe nail holes 56 in the flange of the lowermost louver blade.

From the foregoing it will be seen that a ventilator of novelconstruction is adaptable to roofs of various pitches. The ventilatormaybe considered adjustable in effect, although the ventilator properorthe ventilator unit I2 is in itself not adjustable. The adjustabilityis effective by the provision of the molding strips I4.

For purposes of convenience in interpreting the. claims the front of theventilator is disposed flush with the outer surface of the wall 66 whenthe ventilator is installedvThe flanges 22, as well as the moldingstrips I4, may be considered flush with the surface of the wall.

Numerous advantages will be realized from the present invention asbrought out in the detail description set out above.

Comparison may be made with ventilators which are adjustable in such away that all of the parts are movable sothat the ventilator can beapplied to roofs of various pitches. In the present case the wholeventilator is not adjustable in the sense that all of the elements aremovable with respect to one another, and .because of that fact there isless material required in the fabrication of the ventilator. Also therearenoloose parts torattle after the ventilator has been installed. Thelouver blades are of one piece and can be made to simulate boards orwood blades. This is in contrast with telescoping type of blades whichare commonly used in most othe types of adjustable ventilators.

Another advantageous feature of the present invention is that thespacing between the louver blades is always constant. It is well knownthat there is a certain spacing of louver blades which is the mosteffective. If the blades are spaced too far apart rain and snow willblow through the blades while on the other hand if they are placed tooclose together ventilation is impaired. In the present case the spacingalways remains the same with the advantages of proper ventila- SHOW thescreen 30. There is no need for the screen to be cut and put in placeafter the ventilator is installed as is the case in certain types ofventilators heretofore known.

There is less cost of fabricating the ventilator of the presentinvention than in the case of former ventilators because the parts donot require precision manufacture, there are fewer parts to make andassemble, and there are fewer special dies required.

While we have herein shown and describeda preferred embodiment of ourinvention, manifestly it is susceptible of modification andrearrangement of the parts without departing from the spirit and scopethereof. We'do not therefore, wish to be understood as limiting ourinvention to the precise form herein disclosed, except as we may be solimited by the appended claims. I

We claim as our invention:

1. In a ventilator, the combination comprising, an inverted generallyV-shaped ventilator unit adapted to be installed in a generallytriangular shaped opening in and adjacent the gable of a building walland be fitted to members of the building defining the opening, saidventilator unit having a pair of tapering frame members adapted to bepositioned adjacent said building members, a pair of molding strips, andmeans for adjustably securing said strips to said ventilator unit, saidmolding 'strips being at least as long as said frame members and beingadjustable in directions transverse to the longitudinal dimensions ofsaid frame members to positions wherein they cover a portion of saidbuilding members and a portion of said frame members.

2. In a ventilator, the combination comprising, an inverted generallyV-shaped ventilator unit having a pair of tapering frame members, saidventilator being adapted for installation in a generally triangularshaped opening in and adjacent the gable of a building in which themembers of the building defining the opening are incongruent with saidframe members forming spaces therewith, a pair of molding strips, andmeans for adjustably securing said strips to said ventilator unit, saidmolding strips being at least as long as said frame members and ofsubstantial width and being adjustable in directions transverse to thelongitudinal dimensions of said frame members to positions wherein theycover said spaces in overlapping relation to said building members andsaid frame members.

3. In a device of the character disclosed, a ventilator unit having apair of frame members disposed at an angle to each other meeting at acommon junction point, and a molding strip individual to each framemember, and means for adjustably securing said strips to saidventilator' unit adjacent said junction point, said molding strips beingat least as long as said frame members and adjustable to positionsoverlying res'pective frame members, and being adjustable in directionstransverse to the longitudinal dimensions of said respective framemembers.

4. In a device of the character disclosed, a ventilator adapted to beinstalled in an opening in a building, said ventilator including aventilator unit having a pair of framemembers dispdsd at ait angletoeach other and meeting at a "common 'junction point, said'frame membershavingflanges extending transverse thereto and adapted to at leastpartially overlie the building -members defining said opening, amoldin'g strip individual to each frame memben'a'nd means for adjustablysecuring said strips to said ventilator unit, said molding strips beingat least as long as said frame members and of greater width than saidflanges, said molding strips being movable 'to positions overlying saidflanges and being-adjustable in directions transverse to thelongitudinal dimensions 'of said frame members.

5. In a device of the character disclosed, a ventilator adapted "to beinstalled in an opening in a building, said ventilator including aventilator unit having a pair of frame 'me'mbers disposed at an angle toeach other and meeting at a common'junction point, a plurality of spacedapart louver elements connected at opposite ends to the frame members,said frame members having flanges extending transverse thereto andadapted to at least partially overlie the building members defining saidopening, said'flan'ges having aslot therein at said'junctionpointextending on-a line bisecting said angle, and a molding stripindividual'to each frame member, and means extending through'said slotand connected to the upper end of each molding strip for se curing thelatter to the ventilator unit, said molding strips being adjustable inthe direction of said slot, each molding strip being'swingable aboutsaid end and movable to a position overlying the respective flange, saidmolding strips being wider than said flanges.

6. In combination, a pair of frame members disposed at an angle to eachother-and rigidly secured together at the apex'of the'angle, a pluralityof louver blades rigidly secured to and between said frame memberasaidframe members and blades forming a ventilator unit, said unit beingadapted to'be installed in an opening in a building wall with onesurface thereof substantially flush with one surface of the wall, amolding strip individual to'and adapted to overlie each frame member,and means for adjustably securing said molding strips on said unit, saidstrips being adjustable in directions transverse to the longitudinaldimensions of the respectiveframe members and a'dapted to overlie aportion of the wall and said unit in abutting relation to the flushsurfaces thereof.

'7.-In combination, a pair of frame members disposed at an angle to eachother and rigidly secured together at the apex of the angle, a plurbers,said molding strips'i'being adapted to' overlle" alityof sheet metallouver blades, the ends of 7 said louver blades being turned transverseto the main bodyof the blades, the extremities of said turned ends beingrigidly secured to respective frame members, said frame members andblades member, and'means foradjustably securing said molding strips onsaid unit, said strips being adjustable in directions transverse to thelongitudinal dimensions of the respective frame mema 'portionof=the--wall,-' said hames, and the turned 'e'ndsoffsaid louver blades, inabutting relationto said flush'surface's of thewall and-unit.

8."In a'sheet metal ventilator unit, the combination comprising, a pairof frame members disposed at an "angle to each other and rigidlyconnected together at a "common junction :point at the apex ofthe-angle, a:plu'rality -of louver blades having ends turned transverseto the length of the blades, the extremities of said turned ends'bein'g"secured to said frame meme, bers and the louver blades beingthereby mounted in the unit, said frame members having inturnedfla'ngeson one surface of "the unit, said flanges being adapted for bVeIIyingand secure ment to building members defining an opening in which theunit is installed.

9. In a sheet 'metal'ventilator unit. the'c'ombination comprising, apair of frame members disposed at an angle to each other and rigidlyconnected together ata common junction point at the apex of "the-angle,a. plurality of lower blades having ends turned transverse to the lengthof the blades, the extremities 'of said turned ends being securedto'said frame members and the louver blades being thereby mounted in theunit, said frame members havingdnturnedflanges on'one surface'of theunit. said inturned flanges having rebent portions, a screen overlyingsaid one surface of the unit and having its marginal edges extending"into said rebent portions and the rebent portions being crimped tosecure the screen imposition, and said frame members having out-turnedflanges on the opposite surface of the unit, said out-turned flangesbeing aadpted for overlying and securement to building membersdeflningan openingin' which the unit is installed, said =out-tume'd flangeshaving aslot therein extending on a, line intersecting said angle, and amoldin'g strip individual to ad adapted to overlie each frame" member,each molding strip having means at one end movably 'secure'd in saidslot, and the other end of'each molding strip being swingable, saidmolding strips being wider than said outturned flanges and adaptedto'overlie a portion of the building members, "said out-turned flanges,and the turned ends of said louver blades, in abutting'relation thereto.

RICHARD c. MOYER. NORMANVJ. OLIVER. MAX L. RYSDON.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file-ofthis patent:

OTHER REFERENCES sweets catalog. Dub. by F. w. Dodge Com, 119 West'40thSt., New York. N. Y., '1937,-section 8, page 33.

